July 10, 2009
Ok. Bloggin is a bit tough for me these days. Here’s what’s going on. Got a job at EMC, working on a short term contract, PRAISE GOD! Josephine turned 3 on Wednesday and had a water party, PRAISE GOD! I just switched my insurance to GEICO and saved a bundle…. Not really, but I did just switch my phone service to Vonage and am stoked about it.
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June 17, 2009
Well, we had our first baptism on Sunday after church. The Johannessen’s were nice enough to host us at their home. Six people (4 kids and 2 adults) decided to be baptized. It was such a cool experience, evidence of a life changed forever. Furthermore, a public declaration of their faith in Jesus. It was a first for us at Bay Summit Church, only 3 months old. Each person who participated will be a part of our church history. Pretty cool milestone.
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June 13, 2009
I realize it has been over a month since I last updated. What can I say, life has been crazy. Here are some highlights. Bay Summit Starting Point class, our first one, was a huge success. Our second class Turning Point will take place at the end of June. I have been working just about every job you can thing of to earn some $. We brought another couple, Katie and Giuseppe on staff at Bay Summit. We had our 13th wedding anniversary. Jocelyn finished pre-shcool and has a ballet recital today. Our first baptism service is this Sunday and we have a bunch of people signed up.
May 2, 2009
God is good, all the time. Bri and I are honored to be leading such an amazing couples life group. Last night was humbling to see God move so strongly in the group. There was total transparency, edifying and encouraging each other, brokenness, tears and a bonding process that I believe galvanized our hearts together. God’s presence was so strong that we took communion as a group. Totally unscripted, we turned the whole evening over to the Holy Spirit and let go of the process. I really felt that’s what the early church of Acts must have felt like. We closed out the night in prayer and lifted requests and thanked God for each other and for His amazing power and grace. It was an amazing night. I believe God is preparing us couples to accomplish great things in our marriages and in the Kingdom. Y’all are awesome! Thank you Jesus.
May 1, 2009
Sundays after church, we normally go out to dinner with the Chatelain’s. We are kind of like family. Last Sunday, the students invited us to join them at Burger Road. What an honor! It made us feel great, hip, younger (We were the oldest couple there by a long shot).
Sometimes, the Church can act very exclusively making it hard for “outsiders” to be a part. The most famous verse in the Bible is John 3:16 which says, “For God so loved the WORLD…” The church may act all exclusive, but that is not God’s heart. He wants to include the whole world.
I am glad we have students who think inclusively. Meant a lot to me.
April 24, 2009
I have had an opportunity to ride in the hills frequently this spring. A couple thoughts pop into my heart during these excursions. First, God’s majesty and beauty, I live in a very beautiful area, it is stunning and overwhelming. Second, our culture tends to worship created things, even creation, but not the Creator. I am burdened by this reality. The Bible says in Romans 1 says that man will be with out excuse because God has revealed himself in his creation. This reality exists around the world. If I am being honest, it’s easy to loose my perspective. I am so thankful for the awareness that comes when I spend a little time in the hills.
April 16, 2009
Bay Summit has been blessed with some great musicians and we have a great worship leader leading them. His name is Giuseppe, and we call him G-money. He has been doing an awesome job leading us in worship, pulling in a variety of musicians and laying it down on Sundays. We are very blessed to have such a great team with such great hearts for God.
When he is not leading worship, he is managing “the coolest Christian store on the planet”, C28, in the Sun Valley Mall. I went in and did some damage the other day, trying to support a good cause. We also helped them move from Pittsburgh to Concord so they would be closer to the church and to work. We love you and your precious family bro.
April 12, 2009
“Praise the one who paid my debt, and raised my life up from the dead. There is none like Jesus.” He is the Son of God who conquered sin and death so that through Him we might do the same. We simply must believe that Jesus did this for us and we can claim this promise. There is no other way. The most amazing gift in the world. Thank you Jesus!
The quote above is from an fantastic song by Kristian Stanfill called Jesus Paid it All. Check it out on iTunes. Here are some great resources (from two organizations I trust) to find out more about a relationship with God.
 | barton on I’m back |
 | Gary on Bay Summit Milestone |
 | Mike Haman on Life Group Snap Shot |
 | matt on Focus |
 | Gene on Focus |
